


An Attractive Alternative

by ElphabaReyes



Category: Code Lyoko
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-14
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2018-09-17 09:10:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9314915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElphabaReyes/pseuds/ElphabaReyes
Summary: Set from Season 2 onward.Aelita and William take an interest in each other (Much to Jeremie + the rest of the Lyoko Warriors' horror).Basically switching out the Ulrich/Yumi/William triangle for a Jeremie/Aelita/William love triangle, with nods to canon events here and there. Because I can.Critique is welcomed!





	1. New Order

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I totally ship Jerlita and read fics about them (so much cuteness!!!), so this fic is NOT a letter of hate to the couple. This story is basically a self-indulgent creative exercise to see if I can write a non-canon pairing and stay true to the characters while having canon events remain intact. (So yeah, if this gets too OOC, please tell me!) I may add new tags as the story goes along.

“Jeremie?”

“Yeah?”

“See that boy over there?”

“Huh?”

“The one next to Yumi. He has blue hair! I didn’t know humans could have blue hair.”

“I don’t know Aelita, his hair looks black to me,” Jeremie squinted. “It’s probably just a highlight from the sun. Also-” he gently pushed Aelita’s hand down. “It’s considered rude to point at people.”

Her face fell. “Oh. Sorry.”

“It’s okay, it was just a mistake. We all make mistakes and learn from them.”

“Right.”

The teacher called for the class to get going, and Aelita’s train of thought went back to documenting and classifying other observations on her first school day at Kadic (well, technically second, but it was the first day of her second try on living on Earth, so....)

* * *

 

“Yumi?”

“Yeah?”

“Who’s the pink haired girl in our class?”

“Oh, that’s Aelita. She’s actually in the grade below us, a new student like you.”

“Huh,” William tapped his pencil against his chin. “I’ve never seen anyone pull off pink like she does. It’s a really cute look.”

“Uh…” Yumi paused her drawing to look sideways at him. “She’s dating somebody.” She said pointedly. _Kinda._

William gave her a confused look.

“Already? I thought you said this was her first day?”

_Whoops._

“They were...internet dating before.” Yumi paused. “...and I know the guy that she’s dating.” Another pause. “So that’s how I know.” _Smooth._

“Interesting.” His eyes focused far away, deep in thought.

Yumi returned desperately to her notes, and attempted to change the conversation. “So, I got a picture of this plant-”

They went back to their work, making the occasional small talk. However, the small talk quickly turned in the direction of William’s romantic conquests, and Yumi’s protective instincts continued to rise.

Figures. It was Aelita’s first day in school and people were already noticing her. So much for blending in.

* * *

  
After the return to the past, Yumi talked to Ulrich.

“Yeah, so, about William…and the sauna...” Ulrich rubbed the back of his head, looking at the ground instead of Yumi's face.

“Don’t worry, you don’t have to worry about any sort of ...competition,” Yumi rolled her eyes.

“R-really? That’s great, I- uh...yeah I mean-”

“It’s more likely that he has the hots for Aelita, actually. Or at least, he noticed her. Before _and_ after the Return trip.”

Ulrich’s jaw dropped, and he finally met her eyes. “You’ve gotta be kidding me,” he paused. “Then again, I think Nicolas and Herve have a crush on her too, judging from the looks they’ve been giving her.”

“Ah, so that’s why Sissi’s in such a worse mood than usual.”

“What are you two lovebirds talking about?” Odd appeared from who-knows-where, eager for some gossip.

Both looked at him and then each other, making a silent agreement to ignore Odd’s latest nickname for them.

“It seems Aelita is a Dude Magnet,” Ulrich said wryly.

Odd shrugged his shoulders. “Well duh, old news. It’s the pink hair. It’s more than enough for anyone to give her a second look.”

“We should have dyed it,” Yumi groaned.

“Try telling Jeremie that. And besides, she also has this...this…” Odd snapped his fingers, trying to find the right word.

“Personality?” Ulrich suggested.

“Aura?” Yumi added.

“...the sort of... _Appeal_ , that has us risking our lives for her everyday. And now it’s spreading to everyone she meets here. Everyone who’s attuned to the needs of the local damsel in distress, or should I say, local fish out of water,” Odd said.

“I don’t get it, “ Ulrich said, brow furrowed.

“I see what you’re saying,” Yumi said.

Odd turned to Yumi. “So who exactly is our gorgeous princess attracting?”

“You know the guy Ulrich was about to murder for daring to speak to me?” Yumi allowed herself a smirk as Ulrich turned red.

“Oh yeah, William Dunbar! Pretty handsome if I do say so myself, Jeremie’s gonna have to watch his back.”

“Wait, how do _you_ know him?” Ulrich glanced at Odd.

“The day he moved in, he asked me for directions to the principal’s office. I wound up walking him there,” Odd shrugged. “We talked about music and girls and stuff. He seems like a cool guy so far.”

Ulrich crossed his arms. “Hmmm. Cool guy or not, the Einsteins are practically glued to the hip. I don’t think any outside crush is going to threaten that.”

“Maybe. It depends whether or not William is the Casanova he claims he is,” Yumi rolled her eyes. “ While we were working, he bragged about his past romantic conquests, even told me that, and I quote, ‘love makes him crazy’...”

“Uhhh...”

“...but if Jeremie is able to balance his time between working on her anti-virus and spending time with her, none of Aelita’s potential admirers should pose a threat. I mean, they’ve had over a year of just talking to each other. How many middle school couples have the patience for that?”

Odd raised a finger. “Objection, your honor! That advantage could also be Jeremie’s weakness. Look, it’s one thing to talk to a girl online, it’s a whole other thing when the girl is _right there_. Now he has other things to worry about, like taking her out to romantic places and-” He made exaggerated kissing noises and both Yumi and Ulrich sighed in exasperation.“...and _that’s_ going to be the real test.”

“Wise words from a Casanova wannabe.”

“Save it, Ulrich.”

The trio heard a couple of familiar voices in the distance, and looked to see Aelita and Jeremie heading their way. This time, Yumi noted the heads turning, both female and male, towards her pink-haired friend.

“Anyways, should we tell him?” Ulrich asked.

They all exchanged looks.

“Let’s just see...how things play out. Maybe it won’t turn into anything,” Yumi finally said. Maybe.


	2. Uncharted Territory

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aelita has lunch with William and Yumi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This past week I checked my email to find that I got a couple of Kudos for this story, (THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!) and thought I might as well post a chapter before school gets into full swing.
> 
> Also warning in case someone actually gets invested in this: I'll update whenever, which most likely means long gaps between chapters. I might not even finish it!! Scandalous, I know. But this story is just a creative exercise for my rareship/crackship, and a way to blow off some steam. 
> 
> Hope you Enjoy anyway :)

On Aelita’s second (third) day in reality, Jeremie, Aelita, Ulrich, and Odd exited their morning classes only to split up pretty quick.

“Ok, so this is the perfect time to check the archives for this ‘Franz Hopper',” Jeremie said.

“Yes! I love snooping around!” Odd whooped, rubbing his hands together.  

“I’ll come with you!” Aelita said, eager to join in a little adventure.   

But Jeremie shook his head. “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“Huh?”

“You’ve already gotten into trouble in the showers this morning, if Jim catches you snooping around you’ll be suspended for sure!”

Aelita nodded reluctantly, recalling the red-hot embarrassment she felt at Jim shouting at her for her so-called ”invasion of privacy" on her male classmates-- even though it was Sissi who tricked her into thinking that it was okay to use the Boy’s bathroom. (She still didn’t fully understand what the fuss was about.) She didn’t know what being ‘suspended’ meant but it sounded serious.

“Yumi should be there.” Ulrich assured her. “She’ll tell you which food is okay to get.”

“Really, it’s all in the smell.” Odd tapped his nose and waggled his eyebrows at her.

Aelita giggled, and then waved as they hurried away.

Midway to the cafeteria, Aelita became conscious that she was alone for the first time-- well, outside of being in the dorms. She walked quickly, eyes to the ground as she felt multiple eyes on her.

Wait.

The _proper_ thing to do was to smile and wave at people when they looked at you, right? Otherwise she was just being rude! So she made eye contact with a couple of people, then smiled and waved. They blinked at her, looked at each other in surprise -- Aelita’s heart sank in embarrassment, maybe she misheard or did it wrong-- but then they waved back.

Whew! One small victory. And done on her own!

She smiled to herself, heart lifting from the simple gesture, only to frown again once she’d entered the cafeteria. It was crowded. Too crowded. To be fair, it was crowded last night, too, but she had her friends to make a path for her. Aelita took a deep breath and squeezed in, senses extremely aware of when she made slight skin contact or clothes contact with her fellow students, and made herself as small as possible. It was so loud. So much happening in such a small place.

She saw the people in front of her taking trays so she took one too. Eventually she arrived at the food counter, only to realize that she forgot to look for Yumi first. She looked back to see a long line behind her. Her stomach rumbled. She stood on her tiptoes to look over her classmate’s heads, but while it was easy to make herself smaller, it was impossible to grow half a foot taller and be able to see her friend, if she was even here.

“So what’ll it be? Franks and Beans, or Steak and Potatoes?” A loud voice asked from behind her. Aelita started, and looked up. The lunch lady looked back at her expectantly.

“Um…” She peered at the lumps of ‘food’. Couldn’t really tell them apart. Which would be tasty? Ulrich and Odd sounded serious when they told her about Foods To Avoid. “Um…” She sniffed, remembering Odd’s comment about smell, but she wasn’t able to make any sense of it. Everything was mixed together, she couldn’t tell ‘tasty’ from ‘inedible’.  What _did_ inedible smell like?

“Will you hurry it up?” some kid snapped behind her. She tensed, startled, and looked up at where the voice came from. The boy who just spoke looked at her, brow furrowed and impatient. The fact that it was directed at her made her feel as scared as facing a Krabe on Lyoko. She looked past him to see similar glares. She shrank, realizing that she was holding up the line! A line of hungry teenagers...

She looked back desperately at the food. “Um…”

“Yeah come on, just get something and go!” A girl next to her grumbled, as tall as Yumi, looking like she was about to shove her. Aelita backed away, holding her tray to her chest like a shield.

“All of you, knock it off!” The lunch lady snapped, and then softened her gaze towards Aelita. “Now wait, sweetie, maybe you can-”

But Aelita couldn’t bear wasting other people’s time for another second. “Sorry!” she squeaked, and scurried away from the accusing glares. Surely it wasn’t possible, but she could physically  _feel_  the malice of their stares poking at her skin. She was so sorry, she didn’t know, but it _was_ her fault for not finding Yumi first, to help her out...

Then finally, she found her friend.

But Yumi was eating with someone else, talking intently. That boy with the dark blue hair she pointed at yesterday. Aelita hesitated. Would she accidentally make him angry, too? Jeremie had told her once that it was rude to interrupt people, and she didn’t want to intrude....

The boy looked up and they made eye contact. Aelita blinked and then backed away, averting her eyes, suddenly shy for some reason. She wasn’t that hungry. Humans can survive skipping meals anyway. In fact, from her research they can go three  _weeks_ without food before dying, though that must really be uncomfortable-

“Hey Aelita! Come sit with us!”

Aelita, halfway in the middle of running out the door, stopped in her tracks at the sound of Yumi’s familiar, comforting voice. She looked back at Yumi and her friend, who had stopped their conversation to become aware of her. Yumi waved again and the boy winked. Aelita’s curiosity won over her hurt feelings, and so she went over to their table and sat next to Yumi.

“Uh, hi,” she said, still very flustered from the lunch line.

“You’re Aelita, right?” The boy asked. Aelita nodded, suddenly mute.

Yumi put a soothing hand on her shoulder. “Aelita, this is William.”

“Pleased to finally meet you.” William smiled at her.

After a few moments of Aelita not saying anything and staring down at the table, Yumi spoke. “Hey, you okay? You look shaken up, what happened?” she asked, peering at Aelita’s face. “And you didn’t get anything, aren’t you hungry?”

Aelita averted her eyes, and said in a small voice, “Um...I was... holding up the line. I couldn’t decide fast enough and people got mad…”

Yumi frowned murderously in the direction of the now super long lunch line, while William cut a big piece of his meal and offered it to her. “Here, have some of this, I’m not that hungry. You like steak?”

“She needs to get her own tray.” Yumi argued. “I’ll just go in line with her and help her out, it should only take-”

“The rest of the lunch period? Waiting in _that_ line, she’ll have only 5 minutes to finish whatever she gets.” William pointed out. And then he looked at Aelita, paused. “I mean, whatever you want to do, that’s fine.”

Overwhelmed at yet another choice, Aelita stared at the food on his fork. Her stomach growled even more. “Um...I’m willing to try this, I guess.” William dropped the piece of food onto her tray, and she studied it closely. She never had steak before.  Or anything else they were serving in the lunchroom. She had only a couple of meals on earth so far. Sushi and rice on her first night with Yumi. Brussel sprouts lunch on her second try on earth, hamburger for dinner, and hash browns for today’s breakfast. She sniffed; It smelled interesting, but she couldn’t pinpoint if it was a good type or interesting or bad.

“Well, if you’re going to have his leftovers, you might as well try some of mine too.” Yumi said, spooning her vegetables on top of the steak.

“Thank you.” Aelita said, mouth watering in anticipation.

“No problem.” Yumi and William said simultaneously, and then looked at each other.

“Jinx” William said.

“What are you, twelve?” Yumi rolled her eyes.

‘Now you owe me a soda.” William leaned back in his chair, smug.

“Fat chance.” Yumi snapped back, but her tone and face were more amused.

Aelita laughed, even though she couldn’t comprehend what they were actually saying. She still had a way to go with idioms. But, instead of dissecting their linguistic vernacular, she watched William’s expressions. They were similar to Odd’s expressions, though he had a longer, more angled face. Mischievous and confident.

She realized she was staring when William looked at her and quirked an eyebrow.

Aelita grabbed her fork and took a bite. She classified it as Good, underneath Sushi and Hash browns. She pulled the tray towards her and started chowing down, William and Yumi’s ensuing conversation fading into background noise. It was only until she was almost finished when she started paying attention to what they were saying.

“You think I can get away with making my report on the Subsonics?”

“The report is on _classic_ rock, not _pop_ rock.”

“Yeah, but-”

Aelita paused in mid bite, ears perking up. On Lyoko, she had a lot of time to do absolutely nothing, and so made it a point to listen to all kinds of music genres. Though since she decided to progress chronologically, she’d only got as far as 1960s European music and the early stages of rock and roll. Hence the name “Aelita Stones _”_.

“The Subsonics? Who are they?” Aelita asked. Maybe listening to the music her peers listened to would help her connect better.

“Who are the Subsonics?!” William stared at her, eyes wide, as if Aelita had done something wrong. “You haven’t heard of them? They’re the biggest pop group this year, you gotta live under a rock not to-”

“She’s not from here, remember?” Yumi cut in hastily. “They’re probably not as big in Canada.”

“Hmmm. Guess not.” William eyed Aelita, looked like he was going to say something else, but Yumi changed the subject.

Soon it was time to leave for afternoon classes and the three of them left the cafeteria together.

“Have fun with your history class!” Yumi grinned at Aelita.

“Thanks! Which class are you two going to?” Aelita asked.

“Chemistry.” Yumi groaned, and gestured at her back. Aelita wondered what that meant, since there was nothing there. Or was it another gesture that she didn’t understand? Yumi studied her confused expression and then looked back, only to gasp. “Oh shoot, I left my bag!” she sprinted back through the cafeteria doors. Ah, so she was trying to gesture at her _textbook_. She internally patted herself on the back for making the connection.

Aelita then looked up at William, still standing next to her for some reason.  

“Um, I guess I better get going now,” Aelita said. “It was nice eating lunch with you!”

William smiled back. He had a nice smile. “You know,” he said. “I have all the Subsonics’ CDs in my dorm. I could show you them tonight, if you want.”

Aelita blinked. “...um...” she said, a little nervously. She was not sure how to react. For over a year, she’s only interacted with four people, people who knew she was a digital being and chose to risk their lives (and the world!) to save her day in and day out, people she only knew because Jeremie met and trusted them first. Plus, she could always search for the Subsonics and check them out from the towers in Lyoko.

But…

She came here to live and experience earth to the full, so it wouldn’t do to hold back on making connections with other human beings.

“Okay?” she finally said.

“Meet me at the vending machine after classes?”

“Sure!”

“Then I’ll see ya! Bye!” he waved, walking backwards a couple of steps before turning with a flourish. Aelita giggled softly. He certainly had some -- what was the word -- _charisma_ to him. Similar to Odd, but also different. But she couldn’t ponder exactly how -- she had class to go to!

Aelita walked to History with a bounce in her step. It was only her second (third) day on earth and she was on her way to making her first casual friend! Without Jeremie’s help!

Progress!


	3. Snooping Around

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jeremie gets suspicious when Aelita claims to be meeting someone...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Might as well post this chapter too.
> 
> It's really fun writing drama.
> 
> And it's also fun writing a really overprotective Jeremie. Though to be fair, William's a very forward dude.

“Yahoo!! Freedom!” Odd whooped as they left the classroom. Classes for the day had ended, and the boys headed for the dorms, Jeremie assuming that Aelita would go with them to inquire about their findings on the mysterious Franz Hopper.

Instead, she stopped in her tracks to tell him that she was going to ‘meet someone’  and that she’ll ‘see him at dinner’. Before he could ask her to clarify what she meant, she had jogged out of earshot. He turned to look quizzically at Ulrich and Odd, who had paused to watch Aelita go as well.

“Do you guys know who she’s talking about?” Jeremie asked them.

“A teacher?” Ulrich offered.

“Her new lover?” Odd snickered. Jeremie raised an eyebrow.

“She’s been here for two days, I highly doubt that” he said stiffly. He looked back in the direction where Aelita disappeared. “For all we know, she could be meeting XANA.”  

“Want us to follow her?” Ulrich asked hesitantly.

“Yeah, just to make sure she’s okay. You know, that she didn’t agree to meet someone _alone_ _in the forest_.” Jeremie said, beginning to speed walk in her direction.

“Fair point.”

Aelita didn’t go too far. The boys watched from a corner of a Kadic building that she had stopped by the vending machines, talking to a boy.

“Who’s that?” Jeremie hissed, remembering the guy vaguely as the upperclassman that Aelita had pointed at and claimed to have blue hair. His hair was clearly a very dark brown.

“William Dunbar” Ulrich said. “Yumi’s grade, new student.”

“Why would Aelita be meeting him?” The cogs churned in Jeremie’s head. “When did they first get together to talk?”

“Maybe it was when we were snooping in the school’s archives today.” Odd said.

“Also, he was trying to get some information about her from Yumi when we did the plant project yesterday,” Ulrich added.

Jeremie’s eyes widened. “Really?” he muttered, looking at the mysterious boy more closely. He wasn't  _that_ attractive. But did Aelita think the same?

The boys watched the two talk for a bit. Then William gestured in their direction while talking to her, and Aelita nodded. They started walking towards them.

“Shoot, scatter! Scatter!” The boys sprinted for the cover of some pillars of the dorms. William and Aelita walked close together, Aelita talking animatedly about something and William nodding along, looking at her with a look Jeremie really didn’t like. They pushed through the doors of the dorm building. The boys waited ten seconds, then pushed through to follow them, entering just in time to see them disappear onto the second floor. The boy’s floor.

“He dorms here? Oh my god-” Jeremie pushed on at a speed that surprised both Odd and Ulrich.

They skidded into the hall, but they were too late; all the doors were firmly shut, no way of telling which dorm was William’s, if that’s even where he took her.

“Listen at the doors,” Jeremie ordered, hurrying to the nearest door. They split up, pausing a few seconds at every door to listen closely before moving onto the next.

“Over here!” Ulrich hissed after a few minutes, when they had progressed a little more than halfway through the hall. Dunbar’s room was only two rooms from Jeremie’s room, and Ulrich and Odd’s room was across and 3 doors away. The three boys crept up and listened closely to the muffled music emanating from the other side.

“Is that...the Subsonics?” Ulrich muttered in surprise.

“The what?” Jeremie asked a little too loudly. The other boys shushed him and they continued listening.

“Huh” They heard Aelita say thoughtfully. “I like it!”

“Figured you would!” William’s voice responded. The CD player whirred as the next song started to play. Minutes passed with only music. Jeremie’s legs began to cramp in his crouch.

“What are you guys up to?” A nasal voice asked.

Jeremie looked back to see Herve and Nicholas standing behind them, schoolbags hanging off their shoulders. With a synchronization that had to be seen to be believed, Jeremie, Ulrich and Odd put a finger to their lips and shushed them.  

“You know,” Herve said louder, making Jeremie wince, “I don’t think Jim would approve that you’re _spying_ on the new kid.” He stepped even closer, craning his neck to listen in as well. Then his eyes widened. “Wait, is that-”

In an instant, Ulrich stood up and loomed over them, stink eye at 100%. Herve shut his mouth and ran, Nicolas following at his heels. Ulrich crouched down again like it was nothing, Jeremie suddenly awed and very grateful to have such a friend on his side.

“-So what’s your final verdict?” William asked.

“I liked all of it! Though my favorite is ‘Angel of Mine’,” Aelita admitted. “The lyrics are very...interesting!”

“Awesome! Glad to have converted another Subsonics fan.”

“Yeah,” she agreed. “Thank you for showing them to me!”

“No problem.“ William said. “Honestly I think that music is best shared. It takes on a different quality when you’re listening with someone else, don’t you think?”

Aelita made an affirmative noise.

And then-

“You know, I’ve never seen anyone pull off pink like you before-”

 _Wow, OKAY! What a drastic turn in the conversation!!! He's actually going for it!!!_ Jeremie’s fists clenched, his heart pounding.

“Thanks!” Jeremie’s imagination supplied her radiant blush and smile, Aelita being too naive to realize that William was most definitely coming onto her. He searched quickly for some excuse, any excuse, to pound the door and have William open up and Aelita to come out so they could sit down and have a long talk about going into strangers’ rooms!!! They _should_ have done something about her hair, she stuck out too much, the amount of attention she was getting was _way_ over what they had expected and possibly even dangerous-

“You seeing anyone?”

Jeremie locked eyes with Ulrich, both boys’ eyes widening as Odd softly muttered " _Damn."_

Who the hell did this guy think he was? Anyway, he was _at least_ a year older than her, why couldn’t he hit on girls his own grade?

“...seeing anyone?” Aelita echoed. “I’m seeing you right now.”

Oh _Aelita_ …!

He was going to have to get Yumi to talk to her about some things.

“No, I meant, are you, uh,  dating anyone?”

Aelita’s voice brightened. “Oh, of course! I’m dating Jeremie Belpois!”

Oh.

_Oh._

Jeremie’s brain almost crashed as he struggled to comprehend her words, unable to notice that Odd and Ulrich both gave him a pat on the back of congratulations. The fear and jealousy in his chest disappeared instantly, replaced with relief and a heightened sense of self worth.

He was going to replay these words (and the tone she said them with) for the rest of his life, probably.

“Oh.” William said, voice colored with surprise. “The guy you dated over the internet, right? Yumi said something about that.”

“You could say that...”

 _You have no idea,_ Jeremie thought bitterly. _I’d like to see YOU try commanding a supercomputer and sending people into a virtual world to save her._

“We did see each other only through a screen for the longest time! Over a year, actually. He’s a really great person, I could introduce you to him!”

“Sure.” William said, rather flatly. Jeremie agreed wholeheartedly.

“Great! Well...I should probably go now, I promised Jeremie I would meet him before dinner. Maybe we could do this again!”

“Of course, yeah! Glad you were able to hang out!”

“Yep!”

Aelita’s boots thumped onto the floor (she must have been sitting) and the eavesdropping boys scattered to Jeremie’s room, struggling to command legs that had fallen asleep, just before she opened the door.


	4. You Can't Sit With Us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> William attempts to sit with the Lyoko Warriors. Aelita has a stressful week. Jeremie is a workaholic, but what else is new.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After getting a stream of kudos and comments on this fic, I was further motivated to make time alongside my schoolwork to write chapters, rather than waiting for the winter holidays! Honestly I didn't expect much of a response at all, so that's a pleasant surprise. You guys are awesome ;)
> 
> Once I finish this fic I'm definetely going to go back and edit the clunky prose and awkward word choices. 
> 
> (Kevin is an OC from the Return to the past: A Code Lyoko Retrospective Podcast http://rttppodcast.libsyn.com/podcast. I mean he's only a brief mention but I was looking for an excuse to promo these guys anyway)

William watched her leave and sighed. It was worth a shot. People may call him forward, but what was the harm in checking if she was single? Better ask and be rejected, than not ask and miss out.

It wasn’t just the pink hair. Sure, it was what first drew his attention, but after talking to her for an extended set of time… he couldn’t detect an ounce of pettiness or coyness, which was a nice change. Had a sweet voice too. Excited about life like she was born yesterday; that or she was homeschooled. Listened to that subdigitals album with her whole body, swinging her legs as she sat on his bed…

Her boyfriend was a lucky guy.

At least William could still see her around campus.

* * *

 

The next day at lunch, William walked to the cafeteria with Yumi to find Aelita sitting with three other boys. Oh. More popular than he thought. Looked like they were having some serious conversation, huddled in hushed whispers and bright eyes of a unified conspiracy. Or they were getting in on some good gossip, what did he know.

“Is there room for one more?” William asked Yumi, eyeing the empty spot that would allow him to sit next to both her and Aelita.  

Instead of the instant ‘yes’ that he expected, Yumi just stopped in her tracks, and William could see the cogs in her brain turning.

“Um.” Yumi said.

One of the boys- Ulrich, was it? Made eye contact with him and then Yumi, and for a few seconds William watched an interesting mute conversation between the two involving eye blinks and shifting eyebrows.

The back of his neck prickled and he turned his head to find the others at the table looking towards him. Odd gave him a brief wave, the other boy with glasses just kind of stared (glared, even?), and Aelita waved cheerfully, blurting, “Hi William!” from across the room.  

William grinned and waved back. What a _cutie_.

Then the boy with glasses touched her shoulder and muttered something, and Aelita looked down, cheeks red.

...did that guy just tell her off for waving to him? Like, sure, her outburst did make the cafeteria go quiet for two seconds, but it was better to be overexcited than-

-Oh _wow_ there were even more people staring at him now. Waiting. Expectant. William swallowed and took a step back, looking towards Yumi.

“Uh.” Yumi said, the normally graceful and dignified girl reduced to a stuttering mess. Glasses gave in his input with a particularly pointed look and Yumi nodded, clearing her throat for some BS cover story. William decided to spare her the trouble.

“You could’ve just told me you didn’t want me to sit with you.” William shrugged his shoulders, mock offended but also kind of legitimately offended. “I’ll just find someplace else."

“It’s not that!” Yumi grimaced. “It’s, um, yeah. Well. I’ll see you in Chemistry!”

“Yeah. See you.”

Head low, he gravitated to a table with Mathias and Christophe who, like normal people with nothing to hide, let him sit with them. Automatically he turned his head towards Yumi and Aelita’s gang, just in time to see all their heads whip back to pretend they were still in their conversation.

What the hell was their deal?

Throughout lunch he continued to sneak looks at their little group.  They were clearly different from most of the school friendships William saw, where people were friends only because they were stuck with each other from nine to three every day, from the groups who only sat with their 'type'. For one thing, it was clear that Glasses was the leader since he talked so much and everyone _listened_ , even though he was clearly a nerd and not physically intimidating at all. And why would a jock like Ulrich be sitting with a nerd like Glasses? Why would a class clown like Odd be sitting with a no-nonsense personality like Yumi? Why was Aelita sitting so... close and _personal_ with with that nerd? 

“Hey man, maybe cool it with the watching before they catch on to you.” Mathias elbowed him.

"Who?" William coughed, pretended he was minding his own business and didn't just have his pride ruined in front of the entire cafeteria. "No, I'm just looking out the window. Nice view of campus."

“I can't believe you tried sitting with them!" Mathias continued, eyes wide. "They're not too friendly to outsiders of their clique. I mean, you're _new_ , but usually the vibes they give off are enough to scare anybody off. ” The boy sighed. “They’re up to something, sure, but no one can figure it out or prove anything. Pretty crafty that way. So just give up on trying to see what their deal is.”

“Really…”

“Just letting you know, new kid. Before they, like, make you disappear or something.”

William snorted. “They’ve done it before?”

Mathias nodded gravely. “They got Kevin.”

William raised an eyebrow. He kind of wanted to ask more about ‘Kevin’ but he was also pretty sure that Mathias was lying out of his pants. So he changed the subject.

“Aelita literally transferred in the same day I did, but she seems like she's settled into their gang.” He pointed out.

“Who?”

“The pink haired girl.”

“Oh, her. Yeah, that’s kind of weird too, but it helps that Belpois is totally into her.”

“Belpois?”

“Jeremie Belpois, 8th grade, glasses?”

William couldn’t help himself; he turned really fast just to confirm that Yes, Jeremie Belpois was the guy with the glasses and blue turtleneck that Aelita was cozying up to. 

“How the hell-” William muttered, half to himself. What he lacked in appearances he probably made up for in a winning personality and smarts. Well, if that was the type Aelita was into, then…

"How the hell what?" Jeez, this guy was nosy.

"Nothing." William said, searching for a way out of the conversation. His eye caught on Christophe’s ever present headphones. He elbowed him to catch his attention.

“What music are you listening to?” William asked.

“Arrowsmooth.” the guy replied.

Mathias lit up in glee. “Hell yeah, Arrowsmooth rocks!” And then they high fived. 

“They’re alright.” William made a face.  

* * *

“We’re in the middle of a lyoko conversation, don’t encourage him!” Jeremie hissed into her ear. “We can’t have other people sit with us!”

Aelita put down her hand, sheepish. “Sorry.”

Jeremie took one look at her face and backtracked. “No no, it’s fine, it’s really Yumi that- Yumi! _What did we say about people sitting with us?!_ ”

“I’m sorry, okay? It just slipped my mind.” Yumi snapped and sat next to Aelita.

“Really?” Ulrich said, in a flat tone that told Aelita that he wasn’t happy either. Were they going to have another fight?

Yumi glared at him. “Trust me, _I handled it._ Now what did I miss?”

“Jeremie wants us to do some extra training in lyoko.” Odd said between bites of macaroni. “Since those tarantulas keep thrashing us."

“Plus these _visions_ you keep having.” Jeremie pointed his fork at Aelita. “Maybe they’re clues to something more to Lyoko. More stuff to find.”

He continued on about his theories about the Supercomputer and XANA and Aelita's semi-humanity, but Aelita's thoughts began to wander. She wished they could talk about something else than Lyoko for a little bit.

She looked around the room and spied William’s hunched shoulders at the opposite end of the cafeteria. They clearly hurt his feelings. She knew their secrecy was more important, but she still didn’t like it. There _had_ to be a way to make friendly connections without exposing their secret. Their secret that was because of her... 

Guilt wrapped her heart and squeezed. 

 

* * *

 

William's second week at Kadic was a resounding _meh_.

Monday: School. Awkward lunch. Aelita waved at him from a distance and he waved back. Spaced out to a subdigitals album for an afternoon. Homework. Dreamed about the love letter incident. 

Tuesday: School. Awkward Gym class. Awkward lunch. Watched some romcoms in his room. Procrastinated on homework.

Wednesday: School. Failed a quiz. Lunch. Served detention for 'showing some sass' in gym the day before. Played around on his guitar, trying to really nail down that Power Ninja theme. Gave up and played videogames.

Thursday: Did as much homework as possible in homeroom. School. Failed a quiz. Lunch. Bumped into Odd at the vending machine, talked about the Ninja Zombie franchise. Played videogames. Snuck out past curfew to see Ninja Zombie three, got caught by Jim. 

Friday: Slept in and missed morning classes. Lunch Detention. Served an additional after school detention for mouthing off to Jim during lunch detention, but it was totally worth it. More videogames, until he decided to explore town on his skateboard.

Aelita's week could best be described as an emotional yo-yo packed with discovery.

Monday: School. Superscan Alert. Trapped by a mysterious orb in Lyoko that took her to a new Sector, its straight blue planes and edges replacing the organic forms of the old sectors. Captured by XANA's newest creation that Odd dubbed the Scypozoa. Conversed with Yumi on Gender Relations. Homework. Work on Anti-virus.

Tuesday: School. Lunch. Exploration of the mysterious Sector 5 that almost ended up fatal for Odd and Ulrich. Comforted Jeremie through his meltdown as he searched for the Codes to bring back the boys. Captured by the Scypozoa again. Homework. Helped tutor Ulrich.

Wednesday: XANA found a way to trigger RTTPs on their own, but Jeremie quickly put a stop to it. Sat through 4 lectures total on photosynthesis, the last taught by Odd. XANA showed off a new skill, possessing Sissi in an attempt to kill Ulrich. 5 RTTPs altogether. Redid her homework 3 times.

Thursday: Woke up screaming at 5 in the morning because of her visions, this time about a mysterious Elf. Then got screamed at by an irate Sissi. Skipped class with her friends to explore the Hermitage. Found a doll replica of the Elf from her dreams. Found a _key_ inside the elf doll that led to a locker full of Franz Hopper's notes. Gym. Kidnapped by a XANA-possessed Jeremie, who didn't even flinch when she tried snapping him out of it. Captured by the Scyphozoa. Watched excitedly from the Supercomputer as Jeremie virtualized himself onto Lyoko, only to watch him panic and get taken out by a megatank.  Got detention along with her friends for skipping class twice. Homework.

Friday: Woke up from a nightmare about Wolves who kept turning into a XANA-fied Jeremie. Took an early shower to ease her nerves, only to have a full-on  _hallucination_ of wolves invade the bathroom. Made a fool of herself in front of all the girls at the dorm. School. Kidnapped by XANA. Captured by the Scypozoa. 1 RTTP. Afternoon detention. 

After the second round of Friday classes, Aelita fell into bed, asleep once she closed her eyes. She woke up hours later with a jolt, her mind brushing against the beginnings of a nightmare but being lucid enough to nope out of it. So she wandered over to Jeremie's room, who unsurprisingly was hard at work at his computer.

"Ah, there you are!" he said, still typing. "Perfect timing too, I need a second pair of eyes on this data right here. Finding Franz Hopper's personal notes was such a breakthrough!"

"Of course." She said, walking up to him to see that yes, there were circles under his eyes. She most definitely had matching ones. "But are you sure…you don't want to take a nap?"

"I'm not that tired, I'm just getting started." he replied. "I'm on a _roll_ right now, and I can't afford to waste it. Besides, XANA knows we have crucial data, and he'll be more desperate in future attacks. We don't have classes tomorrow, anyway."

"You're right." So she helped him out. A little while into their work, a vibrating noise erupted from Aelita's pocket. She checked the message. Yumi.

_Want to come over 4 dinner? Mom's making asparagus rolls…_

Aelita sighed. Yumi's mom made great sushi, and her family in general were very kind to her when she came over. 

 _Maybe some other time._ She texted. _Helping Jeremie w/ antivirus._

Yumi replied: _ok!_

10 minutes later she received another text. Odd.

_Hey, so Ulrich + I r seeing Ninja Zombie 3, wanna go?_

She grimaced. _No thanks. Helping Jeremie w/ antivirus_.

He replied back lightning fast: _Only u guys would spend a Friday night working on computer stuff :p_

Aelita sighed. But her conscience wouldn't let her leave Jeremie by himself.

A while later, she suddenly felt the urge to hold his hand. So she asked. “Uh, sure.” he said. So Aelita immediately enveloped his closest hand in both of hers, feeling the warmth and detail of his fingers. Jeremie then started a remarkable job of typing one-handed. Aelita watched him, amused. This close, she could see the glint in his eyes, a sort of _laser focus_ of defiant challenge in the face of overwhelming odds. He _really_ took pleasure in cracking the secrets of the supercomputer, and it was because of that drive and work that she was here, after all. Still, she worried. He wasn't a machine, but he tried so hard to be one. _Aelita_ was the AI, but she still struggled from the regret of not going over Yumi's house, or accepting Odd's invite to the movies.

After snapping out of her negative, circling, wandering thoughts, she decided _she_ needed a break.

"I'm going to get some coffee." She stood. "You want anything?"

She used her little coffee run as an excuse to amble through the deepening twilight of Kadic campus, stretching her legs and breathing in the chilly fresh air of mid autumn. The atmosphere was never like this in Lyoko. It filled her lungs and made her feel ….huh. She didn't know, really. But it electrified her. So she lingered, enjoying her solitary walk in the empty school grounds. Enjoyed the sensation of the hot coffee diffusing through the Styrofoam cup to warm her fingers as it poured from the vending machine. Such simple actions, but Aelita still wasn't over the novelty of touch, of feeling. It amazed her how people took it for granted. 

She then heard a set of rolling wheels behind her, and turned to see William skateboarding in her direction.

"Hey Aelita!" He rolled to a stop next to her.

"Hi William." she smiled. "Where are you going? Curfew is in 15 minutes!"

"Just exploring" William shrugged. "It would be a crime to waste such a nice Friday afternoon." he leaned on one hip, considered Aelita. "How are you? How's your second week at Kadic? Mine was pretty lame."

Aelita shrugged. "Mine was….pretty busy. And overwhelming." She searched carefully for her next words. "…School isn't what I thought it would be."

"Aw. You were Homeschooled, right?" He smiled sympathetically. " Yeah, school totally sucks the adventure out of life. But don't let 'em bring you down! Carpe diem!"

"What did you just say? Carpe _what_?"

"Carpe Diem. Seize the day." Aelita's face remained blank. "You've never seen Dead Poet Society?!"

"Never heard of them…" Huh. She'd have to check them out.

He clucked his tongue. "You poor soul."

Aelita shrugged, and realized with a start that the sloshing of the coffee in their cups were cooling off fast.

"I better go." she started walking backwards, towards the dorms. "Homework."

"On a Friday night?"

"It's called being a good student!" She grinned. 

He snorted. "Huh. Well. You do you. See you around." He rolled off.

"See ya!"

Aelita watched him skate away, a warm feeling growing in her chest and a smile on her face. Talking with him was a nice distraction before having to go back to her responsibilities. 

She eventually came back to Jeremie's dorm and he accepted a cup gratefully, downing it before Aelita could apologize for its temperature.

After another few minutes into staring at their progress in cracking Franz Hopper's notes, she grew more restless than before. The warm feeling in her chest from talking with William had heightened, and she felt like she needed to _do_ something else than stare at the damned backlight of a computer screen.

“When are we going to go on another date?” she finally asked, turning to Jeremie.

Jeremie blinked. “Oh. It has been a while, hasn’t it?”

“It’s been too long” Aelita said. “Maybe we can go to the movies?”

“Er, I don't know, definitely not this weekend.” He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Besides, we have both school work _and_ Lyoko projects to worry about, and that's if XANA decides to leave us alone..."

“What about something small we can do together? Right now?" she insisted. "I think you need a break, Jeremie.”

“But I’m in the middle of-”

“Just a few minutes!" She edged closer to him. "There’s something I looked up that I’ve been wanting to do with you! We can do it right here.”

“Do...what?"

“It’s called cuddling!” Aelita explained. “I read that it was an important activity that couples do together that could be non-sexual. We could lie on your bed and just hug each other. Doesn't that sound nice?"

Jeremie just stared. “ _No_.” he said. “That’s still...too much. D-did Yumi talk with you about-"

“Yeah.” Aelita sighed, crestfallen. The feeling continued to build, her heart racing. She ached for something physical, some sort of stimuli. But she knew that it was important to respect his boundaries, and so she called it a night and went to take a hot shower. Stood in the water for a long time, even longer than Sissi, who was there to take her third shower of the day. 

Of course Jeremie was right. His philosophy was sound: her virus was curable, a normal life was possible, their relationship could blossom; but only _after_ using everything they got in the present moment to defeat XANA. He believed that the end justified the means, and for her own peace of mind, she should believe it as well. She just needed to have faith in him, that's all. 

....Still. It was just so _hard_ to shake off her restlessness.


	5. Final Mix

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which:   
> 1) Aelita impresses William with her technical and DJing skills,   
> 2) William invites her to DJ at the Kadic dance  
> 3) A rift opens between Jeremie and Aelita  
> 4) Odd is a good friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why hello there! I had promised I'd update during the holidays, and I have delivered ;) LISTEN, I know that st. valentine's day comes first, but I'm going out of order for a reason... This chapter turned into a monster, and really challenged me to start writing into unfamiliar territory (whether or not I can write this unfamiliar stuff to its full potential is another story)....  
> However, this fic will be on hiatus until summer (and that's a generous guess). Pressing real-life responsibilities and all.  
> I'm SUPER glad for the kudos and comment-conversations this fic has gotten, though; you guys are awesome (and for anyone that's on the fence about commenting, even wanting to criticize something like 'hey, william wouldn't act that way-' PLEASE. DO. I'd love to talk about it and take criticism into account for future characterization!!)
> 
> Happy holidays everyone!

Kadic Academy was to host a dance party on Friday, same day as exams. Other local schools were invited, and the DJs were all students. "By kids, for kids" was the slogan. Supposed to be a nice pick up from testing, and it worked: the entire school was excited. The day before the event, 9th grade gym period was spent setting up the auditorium. Some people were assigned decorations, others were assigned in cleaning up. William was one of the poor souls tasked with heavy lifting.

"Come on, Will…" he muttered to himself, lugging around the expensive set of Turntables and questioning why _he_ was the one put in charge of it, " the stage is only… twenty…meters…. away…..." And then he dropped it.

A sickening _crack_.

“Oh _no…._ ”

Of course, just his luck that Jim witnessed everything.

“Hey, what happened!?” The gym teacher bellowed, eying the broken equipment as he loomed over William. "Tampering with expensive school property now, huh?"

“Uh, the turntables were a bit heavier than I thought,” William mumbled.

"Then why didn't you ask for help?"

"Uh…."

Jim crossed his arms. “Well if you broke it, you fix it!”

“But I don’t-”

“-Unless you want us to call your parents and have them pay for the expenses!"

"…I'll see what I could do, sir."

So that’s how Odd found him, trying fruitlessly to understand how to fix the broken equipment and praying for a miracle.

"What's up?" The boy grinned, "Hyped for the party?"

"Everything is _terrible._ " William knew his tools from hanging out with his uncle, but nothing prepared him for the raw electronics of this mixing board. Jim was going to have his _head_ , and so was the rest of the school for single handedly ruining the party. "If I don't fix this, there won't _be_ a party!"

“Hey, that's no problem!” Odd clapped him on the back. “We’ll just ask Jeremie for help! He’s Mr. Fixit! He’ll fix anything!”

“Really? I mean, sure." He threw his hands up in the air. "Anything that can get me out of this mess.” And he’d love to finally talk to Aelita’s boyfriend.

Ten minutes later, Odd came back with Aelita instead.

"Hi!" she smiled at him, eyes bright and hair cute and floofy (as usual).

"Hey Aelita," he smiled back. "What happened to Jeremie?"

Her brow furrowed for a moment. "He's busy. But I can help!"

William stood and dusted off his hands. "It's all yours." He stepped back with Odd to watch.

"So what _is_ this?" Aelita asked, taking up William’s screwdriver and feeling up the cables and techno- _stuff_ . William blinked. That was a _weird_ question to ask when she was supposed to be fixing the thing.

"A mixing board," Odd explained. "And those are the turntables."

Aelita studied the screwdriver in her hand. Peered at the tiny screws of the machine.

“These must go together!” She noted.

“Yep,” Odd said. “The tool you’re holding is a screwdriver, and twists those little metal bits called _screws_ tighter or looser to connect the parts.” Aelita nodded. Took one of the parts that had popped out, placed it within the main box, and started screwing it on. But the screw kept falling.

“It’s righty-tighty, lefty loosey,” William called, before turning to Odd and muttering out of the side of his mouth, “You sure she can-”

“Trust me,” The boy winked. “She knows her stuff.”

William shrugged and turned back to see that Aelita had successfully screwed in that part and moved on to the dislocated cables.

“Some of these are the same color. Do they go together?”

“I dunno,” Odd shrugged. “See if you can find out.”

After a few false starts, Aelita managed to plug one set of inner cables together, and her face lit up. She continued feeling around the mechanical guts of the turntable, an action that for some reason reminded William of something from an episode of _Doctor Shrank_.

“So, then….this is the actual thing that makes the music?” Aelita said eventually, when the mixing board looked like a mixing board again.

“Yep! You play the records on the turntables, the board mixes one song with another. The trick is to synchronize the sound!” Odd said.

“....and these ‘records’ are where the sound data is stored?”

“Yep!”

“Interesting!"

“It doesn’t sound like you know an awful lot about it. Will it take much longer?” It would be just his luck that she made everything _worse_ , and that Jim was going to come along any second now and chew him out before calling his parents-

“Nope!" she said, plugging in the device. "I’m done!” She pressed the On switch, and the interface blinked to life.

He stared.

Odd grinned and elbowed him. "Told you.”

“Thank you _so much_ , Aelita!”

“No problem!" she smiled at him and his heart melted. "It was a fun challenge!”

“Didn’t seem like a challenge at all for you. I owe you one.” A pretty face _and_ an amazing brain. He’d love to repay her with a night at the movies or dinner, but...

“Mind if I give it a try?” He held up one of his records.

“Sure!"

He put in a couple of subdigital LPs, and plugged in a set of headphones. After fiddling with a few toggles and switches, he listened to the music play for a few seconds.

“Hey, it’s working!”He beamed. “Aelita, you did fantastic!” She saved his goddamned life. After a few seconds of bobbing his head to the music, he offered the headphones to her. “...You want to try?”

* * *

She looked at the headphones he offered her. “Well yeah," she said slowly. "why not…” She took the headphones, the tips of her fingers making brief contact with his hand. A slightly cool feeling. She quickly placed them on her ears the way he did. Started fiddling with the controls that he used.

The first few measures, everything sounded awful and off beat. She attacked the controls to make the sound pleasing again, figured out how to delay one song to get them both on track.

Hmm. She heard the first song before, thanks to William, but the second was new…

Some more fiddling with random switches until she got to synchronize the songs to a more syncopated beat. Alright, she was getting somewhere…

And if she delayed the first song just a tad, the music would sound like…. Yes! That's it! And if she made _that_ instrumental louder...and overlapped this percussive effect...added some vibes...

Her heart beat faster, and every cell in her body buzzed with purpose. It was an _amazing_ feeling, like…like she was reconnecting to herself. Something deep inside awakening. All her discontent and anxieties about XANA and Jeremie and the ordeal of _living_ just fading away-

The music stopped. Aelita blinked, disoriented.

A very angry Jim stood in front of the gym doors, a hand still on the powerswitch.

“Hey goof offs!” He barked.  “Well don’t mind me! Do you know what time it is?”

Aelita blinked again, looked towards Odd and William, who seemed startled out of a trance as well.

“Uh, we’re really sorry Jim!” Odd called. “We’re…. rehearsing for tomorrow night! Do you like Techno?”

“Forget about it,” Jim said gruffly. “ _Electronic_ music _._ I prefer the Twist!”

Aelita had listened to the Twist before, and it was certainly great! But she also liked the modern music she had just played…

“Anyways, go on," Jim continued, scowling. "Get. Class ended 10 minutes ago! You’ll be allowed back into the gym after exams tomorrow.”

“Okay, Jim,” they chorused.

Aelita looked back at the DJ mixing table for a long moment before heading away, heart heavy. Maybe some other time…

William jogged up next to her and Odd. “Aelita! You really mix like a pro! Where did you learn?”

“Uh, um….” She didn't really think what she had just mixed was that special, just first-time experimenting. "Uh-"

“It runs with the family!” Odd grinned, squeezing Aelita tight. “We’re all artists in some way, we’re creative!"

Aelita nodded along.

“You should be on stage tomorrow!" William continued. "I never heard your kind of sound before, I'm sure everyone's gonna love it!" His voice was excited, giddy.

"R-really?" Aelita asked. "But-"

"I’ll make a selection of LPs, and tomorrow you can be one of the DJs! Okay?” He looked at her intensely with his blue eyes, a few shades darker than Jeremie's.

Did she really play that impressively?

Aelita blushed, the warm feeling from before rising from her stomach up to her chest.

She did enjoy the few moments she had to mix music. And this was an opportunity to _live_. A _human_ experience. She should take it.

"Sure!"

...

She continued to smile widely even after William had left, she and Odd making their daily stop at the courtyard vending machine.

“Penny for your thoughts, Princess?” Odd asked, sipping his drink.

“I just can’t believe William thought I was good after only a few seconds of playing.” She laughed nervously, hiding her mouth behind her cup.

“A few seconds? Aelita, you were playing for over ten minutes!”

Wait, what?

“That can’t be!” Aelita searched Odd’s eyes for a teasing twinkle, only to find...sincerity? “That can’t be.” She shook her head. “It all happened so fast-”

“You were in the zone,” Odd said sagely. Aelita took a hard sip of her tea, savoring the flavour of heat, before speaking again.

“The zone? What’s that?”

“It’s...huh. Hmm.” Odd took a few moments, tapped his chin. “It’s when you’re doing something you like, usually something creative, and you’re so _focused_ and _into_ it that time just...doesn’t matter.

“Oh!”

She liked the sound of that. _The Zone._

“Though maybe I was a bit too hasty about accepting William’s offer, don’t you think?”

Odd shook his head. “Believe me Aelita, you sounded great! And it’ll be a cool thing to brag about, you know?”

“Yeah…” Her phone buzzed at her hip, and she checked it. “I’d better go, Jeremie’s expecting me…”

“Tell him about your gig tomorrow! He’s not a party person but I have a funny feeling he’ll want to go to this one…”

* * *

 “You’re wasting your time with this party,” Jeremie said gruffly. He didn’t even stop typing when Aelita gave him the happy news, though his shoulders had stiffened.

Aelita looked at him in shock.

“I am .. _.not_ wasting my time, I’m trying to _live_ , like you guys!” She argued. “And have some fun, a good time! That’s human too, isn’t it?”

Jeremie finally turned his head to look at her. “You mean you _don’t_ have a good time researching the antivirus with me?”

“I - well - No!” Aelita admitted. “Truthfully, it’s kind of boring! I mean- I know it’s important, and I'm grateful you're dedicated to it, but …I just found something I genuinely enjoy! Something I’d much rather do than watch you work all day! And I think you could use a night to relax too!”

Jeremie took great offense. “ _Boring_!? Aelita, finding the cure to your antivirus is a matter of life-or-death!”

"I know! I know! You think I'm _not_ aware of how precarious the state of my life is right now?!" She curled her hands into fists.

"But it's not just you! It's the whole world that's at stake! Which is _exactly_ why we can't afford to lose a night of work!" Jeremie insisted.

She had no logical response because he _was_ right, but something about his tone just ticked her off. So instead she spat, “You’re as stubborn as a fool!" She slammed the door, her shoulders trembling as she ran down the hall. Behind her, she heard a faint, “It’s as stubborn as a _mule!_ ”

...

Her feet carried her across the school grounds and into the adjacent forest, a despairing hot _fuzz_ broiling in her brain.

_When you come to earth, we can do so much more..._

_Aelita doesn’t have a mean bone in her body!_

_You guys are the perfect couple!_

_You’re so perfect, Aelita, don’t ever change._

She didn’t mean to raise her voice to Jeremie like that. Didn’t mean to call him names. She was being childish. Impulsive. _Mean._ The others would be so shocked at her behavior, maybe realizing she wasn’t worth saving at all-

She fell to her knees, onto rough patchy grass and dirt, and cried.

Eventually, she wiped her eyes and glanced at her surroundings. Just trees and grass and underbrush, the leaves and bark tinted a slight orange from the setting sun.

Oh no, she wasn’t lost again, was she?

A jingling noise was the only warning she got before Odd’s dog nosed his way into her sight. Wagged his tail when he saw her and made a beeline for her lap, warm wet tongue licking her face and tears.

Aelita sniffed. “Oh hey there, little guy.” She laughed as he kept leaping up to attack her face with his doggy kisses. “What are you doing so far from school?”

“Kiwiiiiiii!” Odd shouted far in the distance.

Kiwi barked in response, his whole body vibrating from the action, but he stayed put in Aelita’s lap. She leaned back against the rough bark of a tree behind her, Kiwi settling more firmly into her lap.

And that’s how Odd found them, cuddled together at the roots of a tree, Aelita’s face mostly gone of her tears. His face softened in relief.

“What are you doing out here?”

“I could ask the same of you.” Aelita stroked Kiwi’s back, enjoying the sensation of his short wiry fur and his smooth blunt claws pawing at her shirt and arms.

“Well, I was just walking Kiwi when he took off after a squirrel-- and I’m guessing he caught your scent mid-chase.”

“Ah,” Aelita nodded, patting the dog’s head. “I came here because…” Should she lie? Deflect? How much was too much information?

“Because…?” Odd settled down next to her.

She sighed. “Jeremie said that DJing at the party was a waste of my time.”

“He _what_?!”

“He then asked me why working on the anti-virus wasn’t fun.”

“Are you _serious?_ ” Odd dragged his hands down his face.

Aelita continued combing her fingers through Kiwi’s fur. “And then I called him a bad name and slammed his door,” She confessed, sniffling. “So I’m in the wrong as much as him. I was immature. I have to apologize to him sooner or later.”

“You’ve gotta be kidding me, he’s the one that needs to apologize! ” Odd shook his head.

They sat in silence for a while, taking turns patting Kiwi’s fur.

“You know…” Aelita said slowly, “I think working on defeating XANA gets Jeremie in the Zone.”

“What?”

“He focuses so easily on my antivirus, and he never notices how much time passes so that I always have to remind him to eat and sleep, and nothing else seems to matter to him...that’s the Zone, right?”

“...I mean, I _guess_. But that doesn’t excuse him from making you feel bad.” He stood, extending his hand to her. “C’mon, we need to take your mind off of things. Let’s go!”

“...where?”

“To town! We’re going shopping!” He declared.

Smiling, she took his hand.

* * *

“Well?” Yumi walked up to Ulrich and Odd, joining the long line that led to the Gym doors and the awaiting dance party.

“Sure, never felt better,” Odd replied.

“I was talking about the exam, stupid.”

“Well in that case, it looks like I’m going to be left back this year.” Of course his parents wouldn’t really react, wouldn’t yell at him. They’d be all understanding, ask if he needed tutoring, or nod their heads and claim that school tests weren’t a _real_ marker for intelligence; they’d leave him to his own devices when he decided to be lazy. He could do no wrong. A horrible existential curse, but a good day-to-day convenience.

“Oh, don’t exaggerate, but it wouldn’t have killed you to _study_ a little.”

“Yeah, you could’ve joined Aelita and me to study for chem,” Ulrich joined in. “She’s really good at making it understandable."

Odd shrugged. “Sure, I guess. If it wasn’t for my date with ninja fighters 3.” He was actually planning to cram last night, but his shopping trip with Aelita was totally worth it.

Yumi shook her head. “You’re impossible.”

Odd chuckled. That was one way to call him. “Anyway, we’re going to see Aelita the DJ! That’s bound to take our minds away from the exams!”

Ulrich raised an eyebrow. “Wait, what? How did she-”

“She impressed _William_ with her skills, and he got her in last minute.” Odd winked. “Surprised me too, but honestly, she’s so awesome at everything.”

“You sure he let her be a DJ because of her _skill?_ ” Ulrich mused.

Odd cackled.

“I still don't get how he had the influence to put her into the schedule literally the day before,” Yumi said. “This event has been planned for _weeks,_ what if she embarrasses herself? We don’t know if she’ll get some serious stage fright, or-”

She’s _not_ going to embarrass herself,” Odd insisted. “I was there! I heard her mix! She did it all on the fly! It was an _experience,_ guys! You’ll see. ” A pause. “Though yeah, William having a huge crush on her definitely helped.”

“Hmm. Speaking of crushes, where’s Jeremie?” Yumi asked.

“He’s sulking,” Ulrich said, the true judge of sulking.

“Why?”

“Aelita finally had enough,” Odd said. “Instead of showing her a good time, he’s been cooping her up in the lab or his room to work on her antivirus.”

“Figures,” Yumi rolled her eyes.

Ulrich shook his head. “ I don’t think he’s being mean about it, though. He just doesn’t know what to do with her. Plus, you know, the whole XANA thing...”

“Still,” Yumi said, “I mean, is it so hard to go out and support her tonight ? Go to the movies? Treat her to dinner? Assure her that he still loves her?”

“Taking notes, Ulrich?” Odd teased. Yumi’s mouth snapped shut and Ulrich looked away.

* * *

Jeremie fumed. She had the _nerve_ to call his work boring! After all he’d done for her? After all the sleepless nights? After all the near brushes with death? After breaking all sorts of laws for her fake identity, and to pay for Kadic’s hefty tuition?

He didn’t expect this at all, to be honest. It’s like coming to earth had made her a different person. The Aelita from Lyoko was calm, focused, mature, _saintly_ .  Now...Aelita was impatient, demanding, always distracted, parroting Odd’s bad jokes and resorting to calling him _names_ ….

The day of exams, he barely gave her or the others a second look, and left for his dorms immediately afterwards. He wasn’t hungry. Managed to put in a half hour of scatterbrained work before kicking his desk in disgust and draping himself over his bed, eyes burning from the harsh computer backlight.

He felt so _cheated_. At the end of a long school day, or a particularly harrowing XANA attack, opening a video chat with her used to fill him with so much happiness and energy. A pick-me-up. An ego booster. But now that she was in the flesh…

Well. There was no ‘off’ button to press when feeling uncomfortable with the conversation. He felt anxious around her now, tense. The warmth of her presence simultaneously beckoned and repelled him, mocking him with the myriads of possibilities as he tried to keep things the way they’ve always been.

He thought back to her hopeful look when she asked about their next date, her desperate grip on his hand. How close she sat next to him, close enough that Jeremie could smell her soft breath. Her offer to ‘cuddle’. Her bold declaration to William that she was dating Jeremie. All the times she urged him to sleep and reminded him to eat. The kiss on the cheek she had given him on their first (and only) date.

His cheeks warmed. At least that part hadn’t changed. But...

He thought about the way she swung her feet or tapped her right foot in a constant rhythm, swung her head around to look at everything, went up close and personal to everything to touch it. The dirt, leaves, clothing, dog fur, her friends’ hair, the blackboard, the gag-worthy pasta from the cafeteria...Nothing could escape the inquisitive touch of her fingers.

She had the excess energy of a five year old, while he could stay in his chair motionless for hours at a time. He couldn’t keep up with her. And the thought of giving her the physical intimacy that she so clearly wanted, _expected,_ made him want to throw up. He couldn’t. Besides, they were so young, so _she_ was the one that had to slow down.

_She just wants to hug you, dummy._

Did she? He thought again of her offer to cuddle, the _look_ in her eyes that was so different from the innocent playful one she’d give from the other side of the computer screen, and shuddered. He wished talking and working with her could still be enough, at least until he was ready to kiss her properly. It was possible, right? That she could wait a few years? Stay faithful to him until he got his act together? Or at least, finish going through puberty?

_Yeah, right._

Then Jeremie must’ve dozed off or something, because he blinked and the sky outside his window was pitch black. His stomach growled. He threw himself off the bed and checked the time. Almost 8, the time of that DJing party.

He rubbed his eyes blearily. He should go out and at least watch her. Grab some food while he was at it. It shouldn’t be that long, right? Especially when there was about twenty other student DJs, according to the posters strewn around campus. He’ll go, show his support, accept Aelita’s apology, then get back to work on the antivirus. Easy.  

And then the Superscan went haywire.

Jeremie sprang into action and dialed Yumi’s number first, not noticing the door creak open behind him.

“Come on, pick up, will ya?” Jeremie muttered as he took note of the tower’s coordinates on Lyoko. A hand grabbed his wrist and wrestled his phone away.

“Huh?!” Jeremie looked up to see Jim standing beside him, XANA symbols flashing in his eyes.

* * *

Aelita smoothed down her new dress with sweaty palms. She knew she looked alright- she checked herself in the school bathroom a bunch of times to make sure her hair wasn’t too messy and to make sure her lip gloss was on properly. It was just- there were so many people. Some even venturing to talk to her.

“Oh hey Aelita!”

“Nice dress!”

“Aelita, you look great!”

“Can’t wait to hear you act tonight!”

“Ready for some sick beats?”

“Lookin’ _good_!”

The doors had officially opened for five minutes and she couldn’t even see her friends yet. She licked her lips, tasting her fruity lip gloss. Decided it was time to apply some more. She maneuvered gingerly through the growing crowds, heart hammering in her chest, vibrating from the force of the loudspeakers and louder talking.

A flash of dark blue hair caught her eye, and she turned.

William stood in the back, arms crossed, not really moving to the music. Looked a bit out of place actually; but she could relate. Still. He looked _really_ good, though. Combed out his hair, switched out his scruffy boots for shoes, wore a tight v-neck shirt that showed off his arms….

She had gravitated to him without really knowing it, so close that he turned his head and saw her. His eyes widened and he smiled. Aelita blushed, not meaning to come into his attention at all when she was getting so frazzled, but it’d be rude to disappear into the crowd now...

“Hi!” she said, taking the last few steps to his side.

“Hey!” His eyes drifted from her hair to her dress. “You look amazing!”

“So do _you_!” She grinned, bouncing up on her heels. He blinked, disarmed by her quick compliment, which was really adorable. “And thanks for signing me up for this,” Aelita went on. “The DJing thing.”

“It was no problem at all,” William said. “You sounded _really_ great, and tonight, you’re going to show them all.” He gestured over the crowded gym.

She glanced quickly at the stage where the first act was playing, then back at him. “I am a bit nervous, though.”

“Aww. That’s natural, though! Trust me, you’re gonna be fine.”

“Yeah…” Aelita realized she was still bouncing on her heels, and stopped herself. Painfully aware of the energy crackling under her skin.

“Aelita!!!!”

Odd broke through the crowd and got to Aelita and William, panting. “Finally found ya! Oh, hey William!”

“Hey,” William replied.

“Hi, Odd!” Aelita said. “Is Jeremie-”

“He’s running late, but he’s definitely coming,” Odd assured her. “So are you hyped for your act tonight?”

“I’m really nervous, actually. So much that my stomach hurts…”

“Well I know a quick fix for that!” He had on one of his mischievous looks.

“...how?”

“By dancing! C’mon, I’ll show you some moves.”

“Oh...alright…” she looked at WIlliam. “Do you-”

“I don’t dance,” William said abruptly. “You _don’t_ want to see me dance.”

Aelita’s face fell. “Oh. I mean, I’ve never danced before either...!”

“Take a leaf out of her book, William!” Odd challenged, hands on his hips. “Yeah, she’s a total beginner but she won’t let that stop her, right Aelita?”

“Right!” She agreed. William raised an eyebrow.

“So you can be a total chicken and stay here, or be a _cool_ kid and dance with us!” He struck a pose and stuck out his tongue at William, and Aelita laughed.

“C’mon Aelita!” Odd started swaying his hips and moving his arms to the beat, and Aelita mirrored him. Her movements initially clunky and slow and off beat, she kept at it. The music had an energizing pulse, and she followed it as best she could. Odd’s movements seemed simple and easy, but her body took a while to follow them exactly right.  

She snuck looks at William, who watched them with an agonized look on his face. She winked and then quickly turned her head to miss his reaction, her moment of boldness disappearing as quick as it came.

A couple of songs later, and the music started moving _her_. The lights flashing added to the magic. Her initial claustrophobia about the crowds inverted itself; their presence transforming into a source of energy and community.

“Great!” Odd praised eventually, taking her hands. “Now let me show you how to boogie with a partner!” He twirled her a couple of times and swayed their clasped hands from side to side, complementing their hips and footwork. Eventually Aelita got it, and started leading, returning the favor and twirling Odd around. The whole time, she felt William’s gaze at her back, building and building until...

“Wait, wait!” William finally approached them. “Fine! I’ll dance! It won’t be pretty though.”

Odd released her hands and made an exaggerated bow. “T’was a pleasure, Princess,” He winked. “You guys have fun, and I’ll go look for another lonely heart...” With that, he disappeared into the crowd.

“Princess, huh...” William commented. “Is that what your friends call you?”

“Well, yeah...” She took his hands into hers, a bit clammy from nervousness (what did _he_ have to be nervous about?).

And they began to dance.

* * *

As Odd scouted the gym for lonely single ladies, he kept an eye on his friends. Yumi and Ulrich were _really_ grooving, hips surprisingly suggestive. Odd gleefully snapped a picture.

Aelita and William didn’t have anywhere near their sensuality, but still looked like they were having a lot of fun, even though they were stepping all over each others’ toes. Both had that beginner’s awkwardness, but the connection was undeniable.

He knew, that as Jeremie’s friend,  he should put a stop to it. He should’ve found a way to keep Aelita away from William, sabotage his image, dissuade him from approaching her. Wouldn’t be too hard, especially if he had Yumi or Ulrich for backup.

But Aelita was having fun. She was _laughing_. She was always a positive girl, but Odd hadn’t seen her so alive since her materialization.

He circuited around the dance floor about three times to confirm that Jeremie didn’t show. Being well past halfway through the night, Aelita’s act quickly approaching, it was safe to say that Jeremie wasn’t coming at all.

He was the _dumbest_ smart person Odd knew.  He was _his_ dumb-smart friend, but Aelita was his friend too. And when asked to choose, he'd side with Aelita’s happiness any day.

* * *

Aelita’s act arrived. The magic William heard from yesterday returned with a vengeance, the entire dance floor charged with new energy. He felt it in his bones. He clapped and cheered with the rest of the Kadic crowd, moving his body with his newfound knowledge, knowing she was going to be the knockout star for the night, knowing this night was to be _special_ -

And then-

The music stopped, lights flickered in and out,  and she collapsed, sprawled onto the turntables. The whole gym hushed and stared.

Jim was the first to move, hopping up on stage and taking her into his arms.

“She’s alright, just a minor electric shock,” Jim declared, voice echoing over the silent crowds.  Aelita was disturbingly small and limp in Jim’s arms, her skirt fluttering over her pale legs and her pink curls askew.  “Go on with your party.” Jim walked impassively down the middle of the dance floor, the crowd mutely creating a passage for him.

William’s eyes narrowed. Was it just him, or was Jim’s voice a little... distorted? Might be some hearing damage from the party’s huge speakers, but…

His feet carried him after Jim, though unfortunately he didn’t have the intimidation factor or the authority to make the crowd create a path for him. He shouldered his way after them, not caring about the dirty looks he was earning. William couldn’t put a finger on it, but he had a _bad_ feeling...

He exited the building in time to witness Jim carrying Aelita into the forest.

 


End file.
